T5s vs MH

saltaddict

saltaddict

Member
acrylic51
Yes I agree you can vent the heat. My point was that T5s created much less heat. Which make them easier to vent and control temperture. I am also able to get the bulbs about 3 1/2 " from the water surface something which would be a no no with MH the bulbs could shatter. I am at work right now I will post some pics for you tonight. But if your looking for good information on what you can do RCs tank of the month has some real good info. His setup is very much like mine.
 
acrylic51

acrylic51

Active Member
I've seen the tank of the month and quite impressed, but I have 3 250MH over my current tank and no problem with heat what soever!!!!!! I don't agree with the bulbs will last that long!!!! I have to agree with Golfish on that aspect same thing said about PC's as well...Are these experts actually reefkeepers that monitor everything down to the "T" and post their findings or are they just posting their findings on lab specs???
 
saltaddict

saltaddict

Member
Acrylic51
I a prevoius thread a member name reefraft wrote
"According to Ice Cap overdriving T5's on their ballasts will not decrease the life of the lamps as long as you have the right venting to keep things from overheating. Their current estiments based on their testing is 18 months for the blue, actinic or aquablue lamps and 36 to 48 months for the GE 6500K daylight bulb. The longer they test the more the estimate goes up. They say because of the high frequency they run the lamps at it compensates for the wear and tear of overdriving."
I don't how he got his information I am still trying to confirm this with Icecap. I currently plan on changimng my bulbs in 12 months to be on the safe side.
 
benj2112

benj2112

Member
Maybe just a dumb question, but are those numbers till they burn out? Or do people have numbers for when these bulbs start to drop their lumens and color spectrum?
 
golfish

golfish

Active Member

Originally posted by saltaddict
acrylic51
My point was that T5s created much less heat. .
That along with them lasting longer then any other fluorescent is BS...600 watts of heat is 600 watts of heat..You just think its cooler because its spread out over a long bulb.....
OH, WAIT!!! these are T-5's they actully cool your tank rather then heat it
 
saltaddict

saltaddict

Member
Goldfish
Brilliant point !!! The way you back up your argument with such hard fact and information such as BS just astound me with the depth of your knowledge. You sir are a true hobbyist whose open mind and willingness to learn far exceeds anything I could ever be. As I stated before I am not worthy to post on the same thread as you.
 
golfish

golfish

Active Member

Originally posted by saltaddict
Goldfish
Brilliant point !!! The way you back up your argument with such hard fact and information such as BS just astound me with the depth of your knowledge. You sir are a true hobbyist whose open mind and willingness to learn far exceeds anything I could ever be. As I stated before I am not worthy to post on the same thread as you.

You might not like it but I see nothing from you other then the same BS posted by guys who are just starting to use em..
How about you tell all of us here what makes these bulbs different then the others..why do these bulbs keep their spectrum longer? Why does 600 watts of T5's run cooler then 600 watts of PC's and VHO's?
 
saltaddict

saltaddict

Member
Please note thois coral was totaly brown when it was purchased after being under some BS T5s for the past 2 months it has turned lime green. You can still see some patches of brown.
 
golfish

golfish

Active Member
My wife just jumped all over me for being such a butthead. I guess I'm getting more stubborn in my old age, I apologize for that.. I still have doubts about these lights but I truly hope your they work out for you. Please keep us up to date.
I would have sent you a PM but you know how that is
Good Luck
 
golfish

golfish

Active Member

Originally posted by saltaddict
I want to see that goldfish tank

Here's my little goldfish tank, its not much but it is a goldfish tank. No goldfish tho, just a Betta.
There seems to be a problem with SWF, again..Date base error.
 
acrylic51

acrylic51

Active Member
Nice pics saltaddict wasn't tryin to bust your chops, just curious as to how all this info is fact?? They said the same thing about PC's and now they are thrown somewhat to the wayside for T5's. I'm not doubting your success, I was considering running them in combination of my MH's
 
S

shouse

Guest
The only thing that gets me stirred up is when i see people start spoutin out of the mouth when they don't have any in-depth knowledge of the topic (i'm not referring to you Golfish, not starting a fight). But i do see a lot of people that are set in their MH ways slam a new oppurtunity b/c they grew up in this hobby thinking flourescents will never be good enough to keep SPS and clams.
Watts is watts, any way you look at it. But it has been shown that 50w of T5's are brighter, lumen wise, than 50w of MH. You cant look at VHO's, PC's, and T5's as being similar b/c they are far from it. As far as par, well after seeing many data i believe that MH will edge out T5's in this, they seem to have a pretty good penetration. But T5's DO hold nice benefits:
1. More light output for less watts, which means less money
2. With more bulbs, it's easier to have a broader color sprecturm in bulb choice.
3. Less heat
4. Don't have to mount lights so high off the water.
5. bulbs do last longer, it's been shown that MH's lose sprectrum quality and bulbs degrade faster where as T5's run strong and stay the same up until the last hours of it's life. But i belive this depends on the bulb somewhat and dont know what aquarium bulbs will take.
 
S

shouse

Guest
OH yea,
but with all that said i still believe that MH has the upperhand and if you can afford it, it's prob the best choice. However the smaller length you go w/ T5's the less it seems worth it. My dad is an electrical engineer, so he has given me a lot of info on this stuff, he's shocked by how bad we get raped on our lighting prices.
 
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